Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1887-03-25
VOL. g..
Governor Lees MESSAGE.

AO HUI AIOO -
The legislature met on Wedues-
day 10th and the Governors mes.
sage was promptly read to it. OF
necessity it deals in repetition ol
much that our readers are ALREADY
familiar wlth-the history of the
debt. the action of the courts, and
the like. which we omit. We copy
those portions hearing on the debt
question as IL stands today, and
hls own views about IL:
TIE INABILITY OF THE STATE TO
PAY MORE AT THE PRESENT
RATE OF TAXATION.
From the statement, carefully
prepared by tlp Auditors, 1t APP
pears that the annual revenues for
some years to come will not exceed
g. 100000, and that If the ont
standing obligations of the State
should be funded into bonds under
the Riddleberger bill, except those
held by institutions of learning, the
interest TO be paid, added to the
necessary annual expenses, would
about absorb this income. The
inability of the State to make a
settlement now with a greater
amount of principal and interest
than the Riddleberger act, what
ever she might have done once,
arises from an increase in her an.
uual expenses, such as maintaining
two additional lunatic asylums, one
for the white and one for the col.
ored the maintenance of a normal
and collegiate institute for our col
orel people. and a school for the
education of our cOlOred people,
and a school tor the education of
our female teachers aid to the
Confederate Home Tor our poor and
disabled soldiers, over whose
shoulders rests no mantle of gov
ernmental protection assistance
to citizens Of the state who have
lost a limb, or an eye, or have been
seriously disabled by wounds, so as
to prevent them from performing
manual labor, and whose wounds
grow more burdensOme with the
increase of years; the increased
expenses of our criminal charges
since the abolition Of the whipping
post, and the increased apprOpria-
tions to our public shoOls. These
are some Of the necessary Obliga.
tions incurred, while in the same
period the state taxes have been
reduced from fifty to forty cents on
the one hundred dollars.
THE STATE NOW TO TAKE THE M
TIATIVE.
After giving a history of the in
terterence Of the Federal Courts,
the Governor says:
Let us change the position and
let the Commonwealth take the ini-
tiative. This can be done by insti-
tutiug suit to recover the taxes and
giving the payer a day in court to
prove his coupons to be genuine
and to make good his tenders. lie
should not object, Tor making the
tender ne assumes the responsible
ty OF the genuinenesS OF the cOu'
pons, and this affords HIM an op.
pOrtunity Of proving II.
| therefore have the honor to
recommend the passage Of an act
providing that all taxes, iacladinG
tares on licenses now due or which
may become due hereafter to the
Commonwealth in payment Of
which any paper or instrument pur.
porting to be a coupon detached
/ from a bond of this State, shall
have been or may hereafter be ten
dered and not accepted as payment
aud not otherwise paid, may be re-
covered in the Circuit Court having
Jurisdiction over the country or cor
pOratlon in which said taxes shall
have been assessed ; or if the ten
der was made to the Auditor Of
Public Accounts in payment Of
taxes which he is authorized by
law to receive, the said taxes may
be recovered in the Circuit Court
of the city Of Richmond, the
courts to have jurisdiction without
regard to the amount of taxes
claimed and though the amount be
less than twenty dollars, and il the
defendant tails in his defence and
the taxes claimed are found to he
due the State, there shall be Judg-
ment for the Commonwealth for the
aggregate amount of the taxes due
10 the State thereon from the time
they become due until the date OF
the Judgment, with interest on the
said aggregate amount from the
date of the Judgment until the pay
ment and costs. Every such judg-
ment shall be docketed as prescrib.
ed by law in other cases. The Aud
iior of Public Accounts only shall
be authorized to receive payment
of any such judgment, and no exc
cutiOn shall issue thereon until he
directs it.
The passage of the substance OF
A law such as | have outlined with
the attending machinery to put III
motion, will be carrying on, the
plain theory Of the act approved
February l4th, 1882, and it is hoped